


Lucky Day

by Raine_Wynd



Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: Explicit Language, Jaeger Pilots, Pre-Movie(s), Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-03
Updated: 2014-04-03
Packaged: 2018-01-18 00:32:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1408366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raine_Wynd/pseuds/Raine_Wynd
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Herc tests a new jaeger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lucky Day

**Author's Note:**

> So, Stacker’s line to Chuck about how they’d Drift just fine because he was his father’s son made me think…either Stacker implied that Chuck’s as universally compatible or Stacker has Drifted with Herc before, and the latter made me wonder. This is the result.
> 
> Timeline notes: set before Coyote Tango takes down Onibaba and before the Hansens are awarded Lucky Seven - around April 2016.

Herc took one look at the bed containing his brother and didn’t bother waking him up. He’d heard Scott stumble in, no doubt having succeeded at his stated goal of getting drunk (“C’mon, Herc, we’re in Seattle, I wanna check out Capitol Hill; how many times are we gonna be able to say that?”), and knew there was no way Scott was going to be able to make it to the testing run. They were supposed to be in town for the month to test this new jaeger; it might even be theirs, given how good their simulator scores were. Rumor had it that it was the first of the Mark IIs, since Herc and Scott had had a test run in a Mark I and had done well.

Herc bit back the sigh as he got dressed. Today, since he knew he was going to be putting on a drive suit, he kept it simple - PPDC navy blue shirt, tan canvas shorts, black webbed belt, his dog tags, and trainers. He clipped his ID badge to his belt and tossed a spare pair of underwear and socks into the bag that contained his helmet. Bag in hand, Herc then went into the adjacent room to wake his son.

Somehow, he wasn’t surprised to find Chuck already awake and dressed. The phone in his hand meant that Chuck had set an alarm. “No Uncle Scott?” Chuck asked.

Herc shook his head. “Come on. I got permission for you to be in LOCCENT as long as you don’t touch anything. We’ll eat first.”

"Not hungry."

"Too bad; it’s gonna be a long time ‘til lunch."

Chuck looked at him mulishly, but chose not to say anything. It was going to be one of those days, Herc thought, but he couldn’t just leave Chuck behind since the PPDC had yet to give him and Scott a permanent assignment; they’d been bouncing between Seattle and Hong Kong ever since they left the Jaeger Academy in Anchorage.

Herc was relieved to see that despite his protests, Chuck ate, apparently swayed by the fact that the mess hall had cereal that looked like the kind he’d loved when he was younger. The LOCCENT chief came by as they were finishing their meal and introduced himself, charming both Hansens in the process, and deftly taking charge of Chuck so that Herc could go to the pilot prep area without having to drop his son off first.

Stacker Pentecost waited in the pilot prep area for him, dressed in a black drive suit that bore the stamp of Coyote Tango. “Morning, Herc.”

Herc eyed the man warily. He’d known him for almost eight months now, but mostly as a superior officer. “Morning. I take it you know Scott’s in no shape to test a jaeger.”

Stacker nodded briskly. “Tell him next time not to go drinking with any jaeger crew chief - they’ll make sure he lives to regret it.” Stacker smiled briefly. “In any case, I did want to see how this new Mark II operates.”

"I thought you had a pilot," Herc said cautiously.

"I do, but I’m sure you and I can Drift just fine," Stacker assured him. "Just think of high summer and humidity, and we’ll be fine."

Herc barked a laugh, not quite believing him. An hour later, strapped into the as-yet-unnamed jaeger, Stacker beside him on the left side of the conn podd, taking it for a walk in Puget Sound, Herc was quietly impressed. Stacker was all business in the Drift, bringing a zen kind of calm that made Herc want to know more. 

_Maybe later,_ Stacker said in the Drift, amusement coloring his tone, and Herc made himself a promise to follow that up, damn it. Herc had too few friends in the Jaeger Program, and he didn't want to spend the rest of his life with only his brother and his son for company. Compared to the Drift he'd shared with his brother, Stacker was a welcome change, and Herc almost didn't want to stop. They were meshing well - two former military men, both dedicated to their purpose, both enjoying the chance to be with someone they normally wouldn't. Though it felt disloyal to think it, Herc found himself wishing he could have Stacker as his copilot all the time; the focus and calm Stacker brought to the Drift was kilometers away from the excited, almost chaotic energy of Scott. 

By the time Herc got back from the test, it was almost 1300 and the mess hall was starting to clean up lunch. Herc managed to grab a sandwich before they closed and wolfed it down as he went to collect his son.

"That was so cool, Dad! They had you and Stacker all hooked up and I could see all the screens of data, and…" Chuck bounced with excitement and Herc grinned, aware that this was a rare moment of bonding for them. It was easy to keep prompting Chuck for more info as they made their way back to their room. The fact that Herc learned about what LOCCENT saw in the process was a fascinating and illuminating side effect, and while the instructors at the Jaeger Academy had given them a brief overview, it wasn't quite the same as hearing about it from his son.

Scott was awake and, from the looks of it, in a foul mood. Seeing Chuck all animated, though, made him make the effort to be cheerful. As soon as Chuck’s attention was diverted to the online schooling he had to take as a condition of being allowed to stay with his father, Scott asked, “How much in trouble am I?”

"You owe Stacker a favor; he covered for you. No drinking tonight; the brass wants to see how we do in this. If we perform well, this might be our jaeger."

"Fuck, Herc, why didn’t you wake me up?"

"Stacker wanted a run in a Mark II."

"Stacker’s got a jaeger already," Scott said sourly.

Herc bit off impatiently, “Yeah, and he might just be the next guy in charge, the way he knows things. So if I were you, I wouldn’t be questioning his motives. You fuck up again tonight and we may never see a jaeger. Oh, and word of advice, courtesy of Stacker - don’t play drinking games with a jaeger crew chief.”

"Noted," Scott said, tossing off a casual salute. "So how was it, Drifting with him?"

Herc smiled. “Easier than I thought it would be.”

"Aw, come on, bro, you’re supposed to say ‘it’s not as good as with you.’ Feed my ego, will ya?"

Herc flipped him off. “I’m going to see if Chuck needs help with his schoolwork. We’re supposed to meet with the brass in an hour and a half.”

Scott sighed. “I’d better take a shower then and make sure I’m properly dressed.” He paused before asking, "So it was a Mark II?"

Herc nodded. "Stacker said whoever gets her will have the honor of naming her."

Scott's eyes widened. "Seriously? Man, that would be so ace. Hey, bro, what do you think of 'Tasmanian Devil'?"

"Cliche and obvious," Herc called back.

"I think 'Vengeance Envoy' would be cool," Chuck said, leaning out from the adjoining room. "Maybe something Striker."

Scott ruffled his nephew's hair on the way to the ensuite bathroom. "Keep thinking like that -"

"Uncle Scott, don't mess with my hair," Chuck whined.

"- and you might have it named before we know we have one," Scott said, ignoring the protest to muss up Chuck's hair even more. 

"There's probably rules you have to follow," Chuck said as Scott shut the bathroom door. Turning to his father, he asked, "If you get a jaeger, can I name it?"

"Maybe," Herc said. "Let's see if they give us one first, all right?"


End file.
